Garment-supporter.



A. H. FLEMING.

GARMENT SUPPORTBR.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.14, 1913.

Patented Mar. 10, 191i In ntor,

Witnesses Attorneys ALLISON I-I. FLEMING, 0F FAIRMONT, WEST VIRGINIA.

GARMENT-SUPPORTER.

oeaoao.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Appli'caticn filed August 14, 1913.

Patented Mar. 11H), 1914.

Serial No. 784,747.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, ALMsoN II. I Li-nrme, a citizen oi the United States, residing at I airmont, in the county of Marion and State of est Virginia, have invented a new and useful Garment-Supporter, of which the following is a specification.

This invention. relates to garment supporters, and an object is to provide a gar ment supporter utilizing clips of novel :t'orni for engaging buttons secured inside of the trousers, the said clips being adjustable longitiulinally oil. the supporting belt on which they are mounted so as to be brought into proper position for engaging the buttons on the garment.

A further object is to provide clips so mounted that all metal portions will be kept out of contact with the body of the wearer.

With the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter de scribed and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed, can be made within the scope of what is claimed, with out departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings the preferred form of the invention has been shown.

In said drawings:Figure 1 is a perspective view of the garment supporter in use. Fig. 2 is a front elevation of a portion of the supporter. Fig. 3 is a vertical section through a portion of the supporter and the adjacent portions of the garments, said section being taken on the line A-B Fig. 2. Fig. at is a detail view of one of the clips. Fig. 5 is a detail view of a modification.

Referring to the figures bycharaeters of reference 1 designates a belt which may be made of any suitable material such as duck, linen or the like, this belt, being reinforced wherever desired by means of leather or other suitable material. One end of the belt has a buckle 2 of any desired type and pivotally connected to the lower portion of the buckle are arms 3 diverging upwardly from a loop t in the form of an eye, the said arms converging downwardly to form a throat 5 opening into the eye or loop.

A series of clips of novel form are adapted to be used in connection with the belt t, preferably tour of these clips being used, two at each side, so that tour buttons placed on the inner side of the waist band o'l. trousers (an be engaged and trousers thus supported at four points by these clips. As shown in Fig. 4-, (:lt'll clip is Formed in a single length ol' vspring wire bent to form a central eve (5 similar to the eve -l and hav 'ing arms 7 diverging upwardly therel'ron'i, these arms itorn'iing a throat 8 opening into the eye. The arms 7 merge into V-shaped extensions 9 and each of these extensions has a downwardly projecting linger 10 terminating in an eve 1.1. The belt 1 is adapted to be threaded through the extensions 3 and back of the arms 7 and eyes 6 so that one arm of each extension 9 and both of the fingers 10 and their eves 1ft will extend back of the belt, while the other arm of each extension 9 together with the arms 7 and eyes ('3 will be mounted on the outer face of the belt. Pads l9 are adapted to he placed inside of the belt directly back of the extensions 9, fingers '1 t) and eyes 11 and these pads are secured to the belt and to the clips by means ol tapes 155 which extend across the outer taro oi the belt, one oi. the tapes being extended between the arms 7 and directly bark o'l, the eyes (3 while the other tapes are extended alongside of the outer or exposed arms of the extensions 9. Thus it will be seen that the pad prevents any part of the clip from coming .lnto contact. with the bodv of the wearer or with the under garmentworn beneath the belt 1. The tapes 13 serve not only to secure the pads to the belt but also prevent the pads l'rom becoming displaced relative to the clips. Furthorim'ire as the clip merely emln'aees the belt, it will be seen that it can be readily adjusted longitudinally of the belt and. by reason of the peculiar arrangement of the tapes 1% relative to the clip. it will be seen that the pad and tapes will be moved with the clip during such adjustment.

lu using the sup 'iorter herein (ilesiia'ibed. it is desirable to use two buttons F inside of the waist band of the trousers E at each side of the wearer. Tt is also desirable to have a button G inside of the Front portion of the trousers. llelt l is to be placed over the i'indershirt C and under the outer shirt D and after the trousers have been brought to position about the waist of the ill) wearer, the clips are adjusted along the belt 1 until their eyes 6 are brought directly back of the buttons to be engaged thereby. The clips are then pressed against the outer shirt D so as to buckle the shirt about the button to be engaged, the diverging arms 7 extending past opposite sides of the button. The clip is then pulled upwardly so as to cause the throat 8 and then eye 6 to receive the button and that por tion of the outer shirt engaged thereby. After each of the clips has been placed in engagement with one of the buttons, it will be seen that the trousers will be properly supported'by the belt 1 at four points. Furthermore the outer shirt will be held down and there will be no danger of its pulling upwardly above the waist band of the trousers. In order to hold the outer shirt D down in front, the clip connected to the buckle 2 is pressed against the button attached within the front of the trousers so as thus to force a portion of the shirt as well as the button, into the eye 4:. It has been found in practice that by utilizing a garment supporter such as herein described, it is not necessary to pull the belt 1 as tightly about the body as is the case where an ordinary outside belt is used, this being due to the fact that when the shirt and trousers are fastened together in the manner hereinbefore described, the shirt constitutes a supplemental support for the trousers.

The garment supporter can be worn very comfortably and the shoulders of the wearer are not subjected to the pressure due to the use of undervest suspenders and similar devices heretofore used.

A flexible tab 14 may be substituted for eye 4, as shown in Fig. 5.

It will be noted, by referring particularly to Fig. 2, that the arms 7 merge into V- shaped extensions 9 at points above those where these extensions 9 merge into the fingers 10. Consequently, when the clip is in position on the belt, said clip is supported by contact between the upper edge of the belt and the meeting portions of the extensions 9 and fingers 10. When the button engaged by the eye 6 pulls downwardly on the clip, the clip is thus free to yield to a certain extent until the merging portions of the arms 7 and extensions 9 come into contact with the upper edge of the belt 1. In other words, the clip yieldingly supports the garment to a limited extent before that portion of the clip directly above the eye 6 is brought against the upper edge of the belt. Thus the elas ticity of the garment supporter is materially increased.

Another feature to which attention is called, is the fact that by providing four points of contact between the upper edge of the belt and the clip, when said clip is pulled downwardly by a garment, the load is more evenly distributed over the belt from the clip than would otherwise be the case. Furthermore by providing the extensions 9 with the downwardly extending fingers 10 projecting back of the belt, it is impossible for the clip to become disengaged from the belt when the eye 6 is pulled downwardly. This downward pulling upon the eye 6 will merely result in the merging portions of the fingers 10 and extensions 9 bearing downwardly with increased pressure upon the upper edge of the belt 1. There is no tendency of the clip becoming disengaged from the belt as a result of this downward pull upon the clip. Attention is called also to the fact that one of the tapes, 13, of the pad, .is extended directly back of the eye 6. Consequently, when the head of a button is inserted between the eye 6 and the belt, the said head will press against the middle tape 18 and clamp said tape against that portion of the belt 1 back of it. The pad is thus held against sliding along the belt and, as the clip cannot slide along the belt inclependently of the pad, it will be seen that as a result of this clamping action, both the clip and the pad will be secured against accidental displacement on the belt. By hav ing the fingers 10 and eyes 11 as well as one arm of each ll-shaped extension 9, extended back of the belt, the said belt is rigidly backed at a number of points in horizontal alinement with the eye 6 so that, when the inserted button presses the middle tape 18 against the belt 1, said belt is held stitliy. Furthermore, any tendency of the fingers 10 to push the belt 1 inwardly when the eye 6 is pressed outwardly toward the tape 13, is overcome by the end tapes 13 which are connected to the ends of the pad 12 and serve to reinforce or back the belt directly over the points contacted by the fingers 10 and their terminal eyes 11.

hat is claimed is g 1. A garment supporting clip for belts, comprising a button receiving eye, arms extending upwardly from the eye, V-shaped extensions integral with the respective arms and adapted to straddle the lower edge of a belt, and a downwardly extending finger at the outer end of each extension and adapted to extend back of the belt, the merging portions of the fingers and extensions being adapted to bear downwardly on the upper edge of the belt and the merging portions of the arms and extensions being normally sup ported yieldingly above and out of contact with the upper edge of the belt.

2. A garment supporting clip for belts, formed in a single length of spring wire bent to form a central button receiving eye, diverging arms forming a throat opening into the eye, ll-shaped extensions upon the arms and adapted to straddle a belt, and

fingers upon the ends of the extensions and adapted to project back of the belt.

3. In a garment supporting clip for belts, formed in a single length of spring wire bent to for ma central button receiving eye, arms diverging upwardly from the eye and forming a throat opening into the eye, V- shaped extensions upon the arms, said arms being disposed between the extensions, and downwardly extending fingers at the outer ends of the extensions and terminating in eyes.

4:. In a garment supporting clip for belts, formed in a single length of spring wire bent to form a central button receiving eye,

arms diverging upwardly from the eye and forming a throat opening into the eye, V- shaped extensions upon the arms, said arms being disposed between the extensions, and downwardly extending lingers at the outer ends of the extensions and terminating in eyes, the inner portions of the extensions be ing longer than the outer portions thereof.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto ailixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

ALLISON H. FLEMING. Witnesses:

"WALLAoE J. I'IILL, C. E. DOYLE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

